Stop Sarah Palin! The Books She Wanted BANNED!
Update to the Update: Apparently reading skills are so deficient among my fellow Americans that they cannot parse an update. Therefore this Update to the Update, to tell you I am now going to use strikethrough to emphasize that the list has been discredited. But what has not been discredited is Sarah Palin’s ominous questioning of the town public librarian about removing books. And that she shortly thereafter fired the public librarian says more than a list of banned books ever could. Don’t you get it? She wound up banning the librarian! All Comments have been moderated. None were removed.
Update: This list might not in fact reflect the books Sarah Palin wanted banned. As more than one person in Comments has pointed out, some of them were not published when Palin was in office. It is my hope that the mainstream media will not let this story drop and that at some point an actual list will surface. The very thought of having someone who once advocated book-banning possibly occupying one of the highest offices of our land fills me with profound dread. It should fill you with dread too.
Via Twitter from aboutbooks: Sarah Palin and the Case of the Banned Books — which links to librarian.net where a Commenter has left a very long list of the books Sarah Palin wanted banned. Go there for the full list. I just want to highlight a few:
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Canterbury Tales by Chaucer
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
My Friend Flicka by Mary O’Hara
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
One Day in The Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
The Bastard by John Jakes
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
The Living Bible by William C. Bower
The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare
Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary by the Merriam-Webster Editorial Staff
I think that makes it pretty much official that Palin is a very, very dangerous moron.
Do you really want her within a heartbeat of the Presidency?
Previously here:
Stop Sarah Palin: Part Four
Stop Sarah Palin: Part Three
Christopher Fowler Re: Sarah Palin
Stop Sarah Palin: Part Two
Stop Sarah Palin!
Sarah Palin: Book-Banning Bitch!
Revelation 17:1-5
Mike Cane 2008 
September 3, 2008 at 7:02 pm
I don’t mean to toss water on the fire here, but there’s a pretty decent chance that list of books was made up, or rather is not attributabe in any way to Sarah Palin.
September 3, 2008 at 7:04 pm
The list is false, and is pulled directly from a list of the most popularly requested books — some of these were not even published in 1996.
September 3, 2008 at 8:04 pm
It looks like the person who posted that librarians.net message just put up a list of books that have been banned in the U.S. Some of the books, like those in the Harry Potter series, had not been published yet when she was mayor.
I did see in the Time article that she asked a librarian how to go about getting books banned from the library that citizens found offensive, but it didn’t mention specific books she wanted banned. I don’t support book banning and would be offended by my mayor asking my librarian how to do it, but the list attributed to Palin appears to be bogus.
September 3, 2008 at 8:21 pm
I call B.S. Stop and think about this. Really? She wanted To Kill a Mockingbird removed from her city’s library?
September 3, 2008 at 8:51 pm
[…] what books did she ban? Thanks to the leftist bloggers who have done so very much to advance research and journalism in the …. It seems that one Andrew Aucoin (google doesn’t exactly confirm that Andrew is a member of […]
September 3, 2008 at 9:14 pm
This is absolutely ridiculous and completely untrue!!!!
September 3, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Just a note: I studied something like 11 of those texts in middle school and high school or earlier where I live in Singapore.
September 4, 2008 at 12:01 am
While Mrs. Palin did actually confront a librarian about removing/banning books, which is admittedly worrisome as hell, and needs to be addressed, I don’t think anyone has a list of them, as the librarian in question refused to comment (see Time Magazine and New York Times articles; sorry I don’t have a link). This list was taken from a website that covers banned books in general, but they are not necessarily the ones Mrs. Palin wanted to get rid of. Just my opinion, but wouldn’t it be better to stick with the facts about a subject this serious? Because it is clear that she tried to have books banned while mayor of her town.
September 4, 2008 at 1:24 am
Saw your site listed in the trackbacks for this article, and wanted to point out that this is NOT a list of books that Palin objected to. Other participants in the librarian.net comments have identified this as a generic list of books that are frequently banned or challenged; the list appears to have originated here: http://www.adlerbooks.com/banned.html . As several comments noted, it would have required time travel for Palin to have challenged the Harry Potter books at the time she apparently considered censorship (1996).
While Palin’s flirtation with censorship is definitely unappealing, and one more reason I wouldn’t dream of voting for her and McCain, this list is not the real deal. Better to oppose her for what she’s actually said and done–that’s bad enough.
September 4, 2008 at 6:58 am
Hate to break it to you but this list is a simple general list of books over the years that have been targets. Palin’s reported book banning attempt took placewhen she was first elected Mayor of Wasilla in 1996 — two years before the first Harry Potter book was published in the U.S.
Just so you know… I’m an Obama/Biden supporter. I’m all for tearing Palin down after that heinous speech at the RNC but the criticisms we make of Palin and McCain have to be factually correct in order to silence the right wing critics.
September 4, 2008 at 12:05 pm
The blatent twisting of the facts, impotent disclaimer notwithstanding, is just as aborrent and intellectually dishonest as trying to ban books.
September 4, 2008 at 12:20 pm
Hey, I don’t delete posts here. Which is more than Book-Banning Bitch Palin would have done with BOOKS if she had been granted her “Jesus Power” ways.
September 4, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Are you kidding me? You think this is serious? You and the media just can’t find a good story on her can you? No offense but the media has done a real poor job of finding any garbage on her. When they do they only tell half of the story. I think telling a half truth is worse than book banning… and I love to read. Have a nice day Mike.
September 4, 2008 at 2:58 pm
I am amazed that 25 years after suggesting certain material be eliminated from schools that people are still talking about it as an issue of current importance. Right after high school I was involved in a county-wide debate over whether or not parents could or should have the right to ask their school system to remove certain books. School libraries are to be the epicenter for children to get the information they need to do reports on social studies and geography and have the resources available for reading, writing and arithmetic. Although books like the Brave New World are pretty harmless, there is some adult content that I think parents have the right to choose the time and place their children are first exposed to the subjects and topics. The only way to make the school environment fair and equal is to stick to reading, writing and arithmetic as they were designed to do and let secondary education and parents determine the time and place for the dissemination of social, political, religious or sexual propaganda…I support Sarah Palin.
September 4, 2008 at 2:58 pm
Your blog has no credibility.
September 4, 2008 at 3:04 pm
maybe she didn’t want all the classics banned, but she certainly has all this to be proud of:
September 4, 2008 at 3:17 pm
Is there any circumstance under which ANY book should be banned? Or, should ALL books be allowed in school libraries regardless of topic? Anti-semitic? Racist? Homophobic?
September 4, 2008 at 3:43 pm
@David: It is the topic I am focused on. Others can go pick on Bristol if they wish.
@Pavarotti & ninepoundhammer: The banning was for a public library. School libraries are a whole different animal.
@suefan: I quoted some of that letter here:
@ncarnes: I’ve peeked at your blog. Hypocrite.
September 4, 2008 at 4:11 pm
Oh and @ArrMatey: I think you would find politicians such as Theodore Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, and even Nixon to the left of some of the positions of your core readers. My core complaint in all of this is the unholy mixture of politics and religion. That’s a dangerous game with disastrous consequences. Just observe Western Europe and its influx of anti-Western Muslims.
September 4, 2008 at 4:39 pm
You’ve been reincarnated from Salem. On that witch hunt…..burn baby burn. Who gives a hell if your facts are straight or not this crazy bitch wants to ban books….I’m sure if the librarian had been fired for not banning books, she would be yelling it from the highest mountain. I’ve never known a librarian to take banning books silently.
September 4, 2008 at 5:24 pm
Again, ever see a skater go down hard; legs akimbo, that look of disbelief. We’re seeing Sarah Palin’s detractors fold like lawn chairs. Bet you can’t watch just once: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eX7X4FovYRA&NR=1 And how ‘bout them Dems, they done yet: http://theseedsof9-11.com
September 4, 2008 at 5:30 pm
@Peggy: Congratulations. You win the Weird Comment Award.
September 4, 2008 at 7:01 pm
[…] Stop Sarah Palin! The Books She Wanted BANNED! Update: This list might not in fact reflect the books Sarah Palin wanted banned. As more than one person in Comments […] […]
September 4, 2008 at 7:26 pm
I’m not a Palin fan. I’m voting for Obama. And I’m opposed to censorship. But the fact of the matter is that this list is bogus. The Harry Potter books were published after the incident with the librarian. It is possible that this list might have been put forth by the Republicans in an effort to discredit the Obama supporters. In any case there is no list of actual banned books.
————-
From the Anchorage Daily News:
In December 1996, Emmons told her hometown newspaper, the Frontiersman, that Palin three times asked her — starting before she was sworn in — about possibly removing objectionable books from the library if the need arose.
Emmons told the Frontiersman she flatly refused to consider any kind of censorship. Emmons, now Mary Ellen Baker, is on vacation from her current job in Fairbanks and did not return e-mail or telephone messages left for her Wednesday.
When the matter came up for the second time in October 1996, during a City Council meeting, Anne Kilkenny, a Wasilla housewife who often attends council meetings, was there.
Like many Alaskans, Kilkenny calls the governor by her first name.
“Sarah said to Mary Ellen, ‘What would your response be if I asked you to remove some books from the collection?” Kilkenny said.
“I was shocked. Mary Ellen sat up straight and said something along the line of, ‘The books in the Wasilla Library collection were selected on the basis of national selection criteria for libraries of this size, and I would absolutely resist all efforts to ban books.'”
Palin didn’t mention specific books at that meeting, Kilkenny said.
—————————
Of course, Mary Ellen Emmons was fired, but, after a public outcry, she was reinstated.
September 4, 2008 at 7:34 pm
The list of banned books may be bogus, but this story is real.
After taking over as Mayor of the small town of Wasilla, Palin fired the longtime local police chief. The former police chief, Irl Stambaugh says he was fired because he stepped on the toes of Palin’s campaign contributors, including bar owners and the National Rifle Association.
Stambaugh’s lawyer, William Jermain, says the chief tried to move up the closing hours of local bars from 5 a.m. to two a.m. after a spurt of drunk driving accidents and arrests.
“His crackdown on that practice by the bars was not appreciated by her and that was one reason she terminated Irl,” said Jermain.
In his 1997 lawsuit, Stambaugh also alleged that his stand on restricting concealed weapons upset the NRA.
——————-
I sent an email to Mothers Against Drunk Driving about this one.
September 4, 2008 at 7:35 pm
@Diane: An Update has been prominent at the beginning of the post since this morning.
September 4, 2008 at 10:41 pm
No, you’re wrong. That whole list is false information.
September 5, 2008 at 1:03 am
Everyone’s talking about books, but it would be better use of your time to talk about ANWR or offshore drilling? Compared to ANWR, books are nothing.
Just to let everyone know, the list of books was never released. This is false.
September 5, 2008 at 4:15 am
As noted above, those lists are fake – the actual list just leaked, and we have it as an exclusive:
Sarah Palin Banned Books
September 5, 2008 at 8:23 am
Two things continue to amaze me:
1) How people seem to MISS the UPDATE at the top of the post which says the list has been discredited
2) How these same people think being against banning books = Leftism = Marxism = Communism = Satanism = Obama supporter.
September 5, 2008 at 9:30 am
The list may not be good but it is a fact that when Sarah Palin became Mayor she confronted the town librarian about books she felt were offensive. The librarian was aghast of course and a couple of months later she was fired and only public outcry allowed her to be reinstated. The fact that Mary Ellen Baker is silent means nothing since it is a small town where Sarah Plain still has a lot of influence.
I work for the Buffalo and Erie County Public Libraries in Network Support and find it very worrisome Sarah Plain is for banning books. The media needs to pick up on his issue and Ms. Palin needs to answer about it.
Ideas and Revolution
September 5, 2008 at 10:23 am
COOL !!!
http://www.tretando.com
September 5, 2008 at 10:51 am
Wait a sec, those are innocuous titles! Oh wait! They’re unchristian! OH NO! They must be banned! Feh! *whips out her copy of the fricken Websters Dictionary*
http://thetravelingfilipina.wordpress.com/
September 5, 2008 at 11:14 am
Hmm. You should check out this article I wrote on McCain and Obama sometime. A little bit more pertinent than just a book list.
http://warofillusions.wordpress.com/2008/07/18/selection-08-buyer-beware-v2/
September 5, 2008 at 11:17 am
mikecain:
So if the list is discredited, why not remove it? You could have done it when you edited the page. Also, no evangelical Christian would EVER object to the Canterbury Tales by PASTOR Geoffrey Chaucer. Quite the contrary, evangelical Christians would be far more likely to try to make it required reading in public schools. By the way, I oppose McCain – Palin. I also oppose Obama – Biden. Go check my weblog if you don’t believe me. So as I have no horse in this race or dog in this hunt, perhaps that gives my suggestion that you remove something that you know to be false from your post.
http://tinyurl.com/6p92yj
http://tinyurl.com/6czklh
http://tinyurl.com/6ot9qx
http://tinyurl.com/5nkl6j
http://tinyurl.com/5vfjow
September 5, 2008 at 12:34 pm
I saw the wishy-washy update. However, if I were making such an update which seriously alters the original post, I would change the title to reflect the truth.
September 5, 2008 at 12:38 pm
Regardless of which books Palin specifically wanted removed from the library, she evidently assumed her civil service responsibilities included censorship.
I didn’t think any other state government could compete with the theocracy of Utah.
September 5, 2008 at 12:53 pm
>>>perhaps that gives my suggestion that you remove something that you know to be false from your post.
@Job: The Update is there. If people are too lazy read it or too stupid to understand it, that’s their problem. BTW, your long URLs were screwing up my Comment editing console so I’ve tinyurled them.
September 5, 2008 at 12:54 pm
For you naysayers, check out the lists of books banned by the evangelical churches nationwide. “To Kill a Mockingbird” is on all of them. I’m sure Sarah has updated her choices as time went on and one list I found was from 2004-2005 to help get her elected. I won’t print that one as it is too long for this site. If there is enough interest, I will. And yes, “To Kill A Mockingbird” is on it.
It is no revelation that pentacostals and evangelicals have huge committees nation wide to eliminate books from libraries that don’t agree with their philosophies, even dictionaries that have different definitions for words like rapture and evil, for example.
I find it appaling that there was no vetting about this woman and the people who are doing it now independent of the McCain campaign are finding a lot that the McCain campaign will eventually have to deal with. I see him having to withdraw her name for scandals such as the one that led to Ted Steven’s indictment.
Just read and you will not be so surprised by why she put “To Kill
A Mockingbird” on the list.
September 5, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Well, I saw your blog made it to the WP most popular list in my dashboard. Congrats, on that… but, uh, next time how about not trying to spread rumors? Good job on getting all the hits, though. You know, you remind me of a certain candidate who is very popular but when it comes to substance, he’s lacking or he’s lying.
September 5, 2008 at 1:17 pm
Facts mean nothing to you people. You know yourself that this is not true, I read your update. “It is my hope that the mainstream media will not let this story drop and that at some point an actual list will surface.” There is no list…I would hope to God that the mainstream story would drop the story if it were categorically untrue…wouldn’t you???
September 5, 2008 at 1:37 pm
If anyone cares I have the whole list of 89 books here on my web site:
http://timothyhorrigan.com/documents/palin.ban-list.080905.html
Much is made of the fact that there are books published after 1996…. however, Palin’s executive experience as mayor continued through 2002. None of the books postdate 2002 (aside from one which was updated in 2008… .but presumably she would have been banning the 1998 edition.)
September 5, 2008 at 5:03 pm
A blog like this…makes me want to vote for the first person who runs on the “I Will Have All Idiots Shot On The Spot” Platform.
This woman has accomplished more in the time it took her to bush her teeth this morning than most of us have in a entire life time….Let,s give her some credit.
I guess it give some people some kind of perverted pleasure in lying about and running down successful people like Mrs Palin.
Now go out and get a life.
September 5, 2008 at 5:25 pm
>>>A blog like this…makes me want to vote for the first person who runs on the “I Will Have All Idiots Shot On The Spot” Platform.
Then you would be shot first. No loss.
September 5, 2008 at 5:28 pm
The evidence seems to show that the list is false.
But what I find interesting is how believable this is. What does that say about her?
The bottom line is, she sought to ban books from a public library. When she didn’t get her way, she tried to fire the librarian who didn’t cooperate.
That shows her fascist tendencies. I don’t need titles to prove that point.
September 5, 2008 at 5:29 pm
>> A blog like this…makes me want to vote for the first person who runs on the “I Will Have All Idiots Shot On The Spot” Platform. <<
And that sounds pretty fascist t me as well. Like what the Nazis did.
Not a very American position, that. We supposed to be a democratic society, remember?
September 5, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Hey Mike, owner of this blog,
You can and ought to correct the “update” at the top. The news story (MSM!) that the Anchorage Daily News carried and that Diane inserted, and other, sourced, reports I’ve read, all agree that there was no list- Palin asked the town librarian *MORE THAN ONCE* about removing books from the library and the librarian told Palin that she would resist any attempt to ban books. Palin did not persue the matter directly.
You may be sincere in opposing Palin or you may be a Republican shill posting a known-to-be-false criticism of Palin in order to discredit opposition to her. The EFFECT this page has is to discredit any criticism you make of Palin, since the criticism of a list is based on a lie. No witness has said there was any list..
It IS true that Palin asked the town librarian, more than once, about “removing books” from the town library. THAT reflects poorly on Palin- typical religious right wing behavior -as soon as she gets into office she wants to know if she can impose her values in the publc library. Palin drops it when the librarian refuses, but brings it up again later- she didn’t hear what she wanted the first time, so she keeps asking.
As for “Michael” above, as YOU know, the story IS true. The falsehood is the list, and *your* conflation of the discredited list and the well substantiated report that Palin asked (more than once) about her Mayoral ability to censor books in the library. Back at you bud- “Facts mean nothing to you people” indeed.
Wake up folks- neither Republicans nor Democrats are the enemy. Ignorance, and religous zealotry, are the enemy. There are plenty of well establlished reasons to oppose McCain and Palin. Propigating discredited rumors is not an effective way to oppose them.
September 5, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Politics brings out the dictator in many people. This is was a nice quiet blog, with me happily excoriating everyone to vote for Nader. Then this crazy woman came along who *knew* she was unfit for national office and out came the book-banning news, which, as a writer, is the part that incited my interest. Now suddenly I have traffic out of the wazoo and it’s deforming my blog stats. I’ll be glad when the election is over. No matter who is in office, the Republic will stumble onward.
September 5, 2008 at 6:05 pm
>>>You can and ought to correct the “update” at the top.
No. There is another post here clearly showing other sources that Palin did ask to ban books. Whether there was or wasn’t a list or specific titles is beside the point. If people are too lazy to look here:
Then they’re lazier than you’re accusing me of being.
September 5, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Wow – to call yourself a blogger & post a completely false post makes me understand why bloggers get such a bad rap.
Let’s stop believing the lies from the other side & focus on what is actually said by candidates starting with this video from the candidate’s own mouth:
http://snipurl.com/changeo
September 5, 2008 at 6:24 pm
@CoachDeb: Your shill-ass URL for your shill-ass blog has been deleted.
September 5, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Why should we believe a commenter? Why do you?
September 5, 2008 at 9:03 pm
This list is a total fabrication. There were only a few that some of her voters complained about and in the end, no books were removed or banned.
September 5, 2008 at 10:43 pm
And some people on the left consider President Bush a liar. You are a cad and a scoundrel.
The MSM will not cover for Sarah Palin the way they covered for John Edwards. To even suggest that they would let any authentic scandal about a Republican “drop” is ridiculous. This list is a phony as a 2 dollar bill and you should be ashamed of yourself for attempting to smear a Vice Presidential candidate, of any party, with it. Next time, just stick to the truth about William Ayers and Senator Obama, instead of passing along fake scandals about Sarah Palin.
Vote for Nader? Please do.
September 5, 2008 at 10:54 pm
[…] the list of books she wanted to ban that’s being passed around isn’t real; among other things, it […]
September 5, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Moronic post….. Bring it on. I look forward to seeing Sarah the Barracuda in office!!
September 6, 2008 at 12:02 am
Dude.
You fell for a viral e-mail, and a pretty lame one at that.
Next you’ll be sending your bank account info to some Nigerian guy.
How embarassing for you, but at least you didn’t get your finances and credit rating trashed over the mistake.
September 6, 2008 at 12:13 am
[…] Barack is afraid to attack her because she is clearly sharper than him. Therefore he is letting his attack dogs do the job for him. They’ll keep this garbage coming and I’ll keep educating the sheep. […]
September 6, 2008 at 12:27 am
You guys have hit the sweet spot.
Religion.
Just be aware you are way outnumbered and book banning is not something that religious groups hold in high regard. It is only the extream religious groups (of which there are not many nor many in number) that like to ban books they don’t like.
But it very seldom happens anyway, so it is not something to really worry about. But if it can get Gov. Palin bad press, I can see why you would go for it.
Keep it up, many see democrats and the media as crazy loons already. If this continues, everybody even some democrats are going to think all of you are crazy loons and disregard everything you say or write.
Papa Ray
September 6, 2008 at 12:41 am
The Harry Potter books were not even published at the time Palin was mayor. This supposedly happened in 1996. Please check facts before posting inaccuracies.
September 6, 2008 at 1:06 am
regardless of the list being factual or not, book banning is not a practice that i want to see from anyone, specifically from any politician that is so blatantly selling herself/ himself as one “of the people”. There is a bigger picture here. While I agree that this is a list that has gone around as “books to be banned” by staunch conservatives everywhere, book banning is- in effect- not representative of freedom and liberty.
September 6, 2008 at 1:14 am
oh- and “ncarnes”: you have very little credibility. you have stated on my blog and others that “we” are blinded by left media. Almost to the point of accusing us of blindly following. While I respect you right to your religious beliefs, do not come down on someone having no cred when you state on your own site that you are a faithful servant to the (one and only) savior and lord, Jesus Christ. That to me has no cred and is offensive to me and to anyone else that has different beliefs than you. Have at it. I respect that you have your convictions. But respect that Jewish is Jewish and that all Muslims are not about Jihad. You are a walking contradiction.
September 6, 2008 at 1:25 am
Do not take another step to the left! (You are about to fall off the same wagon!) Did you know it is a sin to defame someone? He is not happy with this kind of misguided stuff. However, you can repent of your foolishness. Is not the love of God great? Nevertheless, the wrath is a kicker!
September 6, 2008 at 2:38 am
Hillary Hillary HIllary- C’mon everyone- Hillary Hillary HIllary Hillary Hillary HIllary Hillary Hillary HIllary
September 6, 2008 at 2:45 am
I give you permission to get a real life.
September 6, 2008 at 5:05 am
This just hit the News Wires, Barack Obama Caught in a Sex Scandal. Check it out on this wordpress blog:
http://texasturtle.wordpress.com/2008/09/06/barack-obama-caught-in-sex-scandal/
September 6, 2008 at 7:46 am
Book banning: Bad. Comment banning: Good?
September 6, 2008 at 8:35 am
Wow, “fake but accurate”, just like Dan Rather. You must be so proud…
September 6, 2008 at 8:42 am
Geez. She asked about removing books. Big deal. I served as a librarian for a small school and books were removed all of the time. Science books that referred to “man may walk on the moon, someday” is one example. Titles that contained words or phrases in the title that became politically incorrect like “gay” or “black sambo” or “tar baby” also got a close looking at. The world changes and any librarian worth a damn will always have questions about the value of a book in a library of limited shelf space.
It is truly amazing some of the smut that people would “donate” as if they were doing the world a favor. Then whisper censorship, book-burner, right-wing reactionary, or worse when their favorite p0rn hit the trash can instead of the shelf.
Does anyone think that libraries should be filled with the writings of Pol Pot, Osama Bin Laden, and Adolf Hitler? Of course not, censorship occurs at libraries all of the time.
This is just another lame attempt to tar a strong minded, intelligent woman because of her political party. Sad.
September 6, 2008 at 9:07 am
Somebody made up a completely bogus list of books they think a social conservative would ban, and left off Origin of the Species? Even after the “Sarah Palin wants to force your child to learn creationism” rumor? Tsk, tsk. You crazed, vindictive smearmongers are really slipping.
September 6, 2008 at 10:20 am
This list is completely bogus. Sarah Palin never drew up any such list, nor, in fact, did she ever ask that any books be removed from any library. She merely asked the librarian if, theoretically, she (the librarian) would comply if asked to remove books. Theoretically. The librarian said no. Palin thereupon dropped the matter of theoretically removing books from the library.
Don’t take my word for it, these are the facts as recounted by the librarian herself.
Mike Cane, you’re an ignorant, hysterical fool.
September 6, 2008 at 10:36 am
Seriously? We’re supposed to believe that Palin is remarkably well-read, prophetic, and tried to ban “James and the Giant Peach”, “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer”, and the dictionary? Really?
The stupidity of certain liberals amazes me. I’m just wondering how long it is until Andrew Sullivan links to this.
BTW: whoever the moron author of this blog is – anonymous comments on a blog are a slightly less reliable source than the voices in your head.
Did you know that Joe Biden, on two occasions, clubbed a baby kitten to death while drunk and wearing a SS uniform? It’s true! I read it in the comments of a blog.
September 6, 2008 at 10:59 am
Obviously I’d heard the rumors and stuff ,but Hell was I suprised.I was waving my support group goodnight when I heard a disturbin sound.I jogged round back percieving a Bizzarre .. sound , and Holy Algore there was a spaceship ! There wer Lizardoid creatures unloading bunches of pamphlets and stuff. I snagged one before the ship left and was surprised and dumfounded to read that the Republicans were merely clones of that Lizardoid Kingdom , bent on establishing their will over us earthlings
September 6, 2008 at 11:05 am
Wow… Fake but accurate rears it’s ugly head again. Didn’t this fail last time with the fake Rathergate documents?
September 6, 2008 at 12:07 pm
Oh, it totally fills me with dread, regardless of whether or not she tried to ban these specific titles. Folks, let’s not get hung up on details. This woman is dangerous.
September 6, 2008 at 12:25 pm
It would be pretty cool if the new vice prezi of the US would be a TOP MILF.
September 6, 2008 at 1:15 pm
[…] about Gov. Palin having submitted a very long list of books to the librarian as a loyalty test here and here.) Mayor-elect Palin took office in 1996. Those of you with long memories will recall there […]
September 6, 2008 at 1:27 pm
tried to have books banned while mayor of her town.
First of all, nobody thinks that she tried to have books banned, only that she considered trying to have books REMOVED FROM THE SHELVES OF THE PUBLIC LIBRARY funded by TAXPAYERS which they find objectionable and HAVE EVERY RIGHT to do so.
Can we all concede that there are SOME books which should not be on a public library shelf? Penthouse magazine, for example? How about KKK recruiting manuals? Books that advocate genocide? So if there are SOME books that should be not in a PUBLIC LIBRARY, then we all agree with Sarah Pallin.
If some classics which are not pornography, or advocating genocide that she tried to have removed from the shelves of the library, let’s talk about it.
Matt
September 6, 2008 at 1:59 pm
[…] September 6, 2008 at 6:59 pm · Filed under Mish-Mash and tagged: Presidential election, Sarah Palin Banned books A wishlist of books Palin wanted to ban… […]
September 6, 2008 at 3:00 pm
If elected, Sarah Palin will be one heart beat away from the highest political office in the world…our right to choose (life, reading materials, etc.) could be lost. Does this frighten anyone else out there?
September 6, 2008 at 4:07 pm
“Why believe those hores-asses from Washington either, Sarah Palin is an Outside and always saves room for dessert!”
http://faqnews.wordpress.com/2008/09/06/republicans-hold-anti-chocolate-rally-in-the-midwest/
September 6, 2008 at 4:52 pm
Who cares if the list is accurate? The serious point is that she did seek to ban books. Fortunately, the library and the citizens stood against her stupidity. If John McCain and Sarah Palin are elected, we will have to contend with this kind of of Ass. of God ignorance for four more years.
Stand for everything that is good and just! Vote for Barack Obama!
September 6, 2008 at 7:02 pm
[…] the list of books she wanted to ban that’s being passed around isn’t real; among other things, it includes a […]
September 6, 2008 at 7:44 pm
[…] the list of books she wanted to ban that’s being passed around isn’t real; among other things, it includes a […]
September 6, 2008 at 8:44 pm
Instead of continuing to propagate a lie, you know very well that this listing is fake, why not pull it down? Or does it help your notoriety to keep a lie up? The listing is fake. It has been proven fake. Others are admitting the mistake.
http://michellemalkin.com/2008/09/06/the-bogus-sarah-palin-banned-books-list/
How about you do the honorable thing and pull this down?
September 7, 2008 at 1:33 am
The list I’m not so sure about, but it is quite true that she did try to ban books from public libraries. She also planned to sue the federal gov. if they put polar bears on the endangered list. After all she is a freak when it comes to oil. Mrs. Palin also fired a long time local policeman for stepping on her fucking foot. Oh, and lastly, she dropped out of journalism. Journalism people! If she can’t finish something so miniscule as that, then what makes you think she should become VP?
By the way, how do I know all this? I just happen to be from Alaska. I have first class info on her numerous flaws. I’ll bet you didn’t know she voted yes for a gold mine that is to kill our salmon ( Pebble Mine has to drain out five major salmon lakes in order to get said shiny rocks. Haha, unless you’re a miner, Alaskans don’t get any of that profit. Compare that to fish.)
Hmm. She also wants to make public schools convert to creationism. The United States already has a terrible education system. I really don’t think we need any extra damage in this field.
There is a lot more to Palin than most of the States know. She may be a pretty female VP, but that doesn’t mean she’s got what it takes to be one. I sure don’t want to be raped by a bum (or dad) and find out that I can’t get rid of his fetus. Nor do I want to be stuck in a school that teaches nothing but Christianity. That is a nightmare for athiests. I thought America was supposed to be pro choice. I guess all that is gonna change if Mcain is elected.
Oh, and girlies, Obama is also graced with good looks too. He even supports our choices. I prefer that over a woman who is against womenkind.
September 7, 2008 at 3:23 am
Keep focusing on this topic, please. It will distract you from campaigning for Obama.
(Wow, books she MIGHT have banned…)
September 7, 2008 at 3:28 am
I will surely punch the face of a politician who bans any books of my interest — punch a face, indeed.
September 7, 2008 at 4:28 am
Banning books is for pinko liberals, real Republicans burn them!
September 7, 2008 at 5:52 am
Canterbury Tales by Chaucer
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Chaucer, Steinbeck … and even Twain?! Her win would be the signal for the start of idiocracy.
September 7, 2008 at 7:12 am
oh my.
September 7, 2008 at 8:24 am
I really don’t think you have your facts straight However, kudos to Sarah if it is true!
September 7, 2008 at 11:55 am
There’s silliness and then there is political ideological silliness and this is a classic example of the latter.
At this point continuing pushing this factless rumor has become an exercise in sheer stupidity particularly since the list of books has been proven to be a classic example of political fakery. Whoever the idiot was who wrote it r was so eager to post his smear that he didn’t bother to fact check his list as far as publication dates where concerned.
People if you are going to attack Sarah Palin attack her on facts not on rumors and innuendo if anything doing the latter in a an age where one can fact check an rumor just by googling it is an exercise of hara kiri as far as your own credibility is concerned.
My advice would be to fully retract this and post why you are retracting it.
If you keep pushing this the less credibility you will have.
September 7, 2008 at 12:24 pm
ridiculous. People I found a great website that I have visited often since because there is so much misinformation out there on both sides. This post is just smear gossip. Its so immature. Go to http://www.factcheck.org to find out the truth among so many of the lies.
September 7, 2008 at 1:25 pm
Come on, this is exactly the kind of poisonous garbage that will end up going against the Dems and giving a victory to McCain/Palin. It’s clearly false, as some of those books weren’t even published in 1996 when Palin allegedly tried to ban books.
Barack Obama would be ashamed that so-called liberal bloggers are attempting to turn this campaign nasty by spreading lies and smears online. Keep to the facts – that she is inexperienced, that she’s currently under investigation in her own state, that she has extreme right-wing views – and we will win out in the end.
Spreading lies and smears just smacks of desperation, and shows that you are afraid.
September 7, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Good update, btw.
September 7, 2008 at 3:29 pm
Hey, look up ‘excoriate’, moron.
September 7, 2008 at 5:32 pm
You guys on the left are a bunch of jack booted thugs…total Nazis…but your propaganda isn’t working, and thank God you aren’t allowed to round up individuals who disagree with you and then imprison and do God knows what else to them.
Your incredible hatred for people who have a different political opinion than your own is frightening. I am glad I live in a country that will protect me from nasty hate mongerers like you! Spew away…
September 7, 2008 at 7:12 pm
[…] the list of books she wanted to ban thats being passed around isnt real; among other things, it includes a number […]
September 7, 2008 at 8:52 pm
oh dear.
September 7, 2008 at 9:32 pm
I think that makes it pretty much official that Palin is a very, very dangerous moron.
Do you really want her within a heartbeat of the Presidency?
Speaking of morons…where did you get your information? I just love how much this woman scares you liberals! LOLOL!!!!!!!!!!
September 7, 2008 at 11:54 pm
Why should we be afraid of a fake list? If this were the real list, then we would have something to “fear.”
September 8, 2008 at 12:35 am
Books banned… by librarians
Examples:
Little Black Sambo–a book about a heroic Indian boy (sub-continent) who outwits tigers. What? Was it banned because it presents a child “of color” who is smart, brave and committed to a worthwhile goal? Try to find a copy in your local library. Ask the librarian why it’s not in the collection.
Or how about Killer Angel: A Short Biography of Planned Parenthood’s Founder, Margaret Sanger by George Grant. Oh, of course this book will be banned in most libraries, because it details Margaret Sanger’s committment to “eugenics” and wiping out Blacks through abortion and other means.
It seems the ongoing banning of books like these by many librarians ought to be of more concern than the fake, phony, lying list of banned books attributed to Palin by folks who don’t even bother to do their own homework.
September 8, 2008 at 1:55 am
So the whole thing is “fake but accurate” in your view. You’re clearly retarded.
September 8, 2008 at 2:06 am
As the above list has already been proven to be bogus, therefore seriously calling into question the reliability of this blog, I’ll simply point out something:
Would you oppose the power to ban books from a school library if the librarian wanted to stock the shelves with Mein Kampf, The Turner Diaries, and The Anarchist’s Cookbook?
This is what the Left in America has come to. Shameful.
September 8, 2008 at 9:21 am
LMFAO!!!!
Sure, like someone would really “Ban” a dictionary!!! seriously, at least come up with a lie that’s half-way believable.
September 8, 2008 at 7:17 pm
Mr. Cane: Respectfully, You are FULL OF IT! Yes, VERY full of it, the same idiots putting out this garbage are the same ones that said that by the year 2007, we would be paying .08 each to send emails, that put it around that Bill Gates was gonna pay the average Joe to do research and Blah, Blah, Blah! If you believe this tripe, then I am gonna borrow back that Bridge in Arizona and sell it to ya – I will give you a great price! GROW UP! I guess you would like to see NO censorship and having our kids being able to take out Hitler’s Mein Kampf , Charlie Manson’s personal stuff and the KKK Manual, and be able to log into Porn on computers at the Local Library! I am for some sensible censorship to protect our kids. Sarah Palin is a family values person with a family TO protect, What do YOU want to protect – You and the ACLU , need to GO!
September 8, 2008 at 7:29 pm
PS I did read the uopdte you fool, that is why I am writing – this whole Blog was used to get YOU more traffic, well congrats, now REMOVE the FALSE BLOG!
September 8, 2008 at 8:13 pm
Your other post doesn’t show that Palin asked for books to be banned.
She asked the librarian what the response would be if she did ask to remove books.
There is a difference.
September 8, 2008 at 8:59 pm
[…] 9th, 2008 Still not sold on McCain-Palin, I remain amused by the reaction to the undercard. Witness “Mike Cane 2008″, who finds a comment on some other blog somewhere that lists the books Sarah Palin supposedly […]
September 8, 2008 at 9:13 pm
People who fear knowledge rarely bring good.
September 8, 2008 at 10:46 pm
This is a false list…………HARRY POTTERs books didnt come out till 1997……..this happened in 1996
September 9, 2008 at 12:30 am
If you want to check out the astological lowdown on Obama and Palin go to http://www.robertphoenix.com
September 9, 2008 at 2:04 am
[…] veritable hit parade of the censors’ delight (from Mike Cane): Brave New World, Harry Potter, Huck Finn, The Living Bible, etc. Wanting to censor Huck Finn is […]
September 9, 2008 at 6:01 am
Take two seconds to google Sarah Palin hoax. It simply isn’t true. Stop perpetuating. We’re as bad as they are if we pass on this kind of nonsense.
September 9, 2008 at 7:50 am
In response to your question, “Do you really want her within a heartbeat of the Presidency?”
– No, I don’t. I want her within zero heartbeats of the presidency. I want her to be president.
September 9, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Geez, dumbass, did you read anything about the actual incident at a city council meeting that got this stupid rumor started? She inquired about books that might be objectionable. Presumably someone had griped to her about something that was sexually explicit, so she wanted to find out if there was a process to deal with that. She didn’t actually “advocate” banning anything. She didn’t actually do anything except ask the librarian about it.
Sheesh.
September 9, 2008 at 5:23 pm
I’m in favor of banning The Living Bible. It’s a horrible paraphrase.
September 9, 2008 at 6:22 pm
This has to be one of the most stupid articles I’ve read on the ‘Net, and I’ve read a lot. Why don’t we just take every rumor floating around through e-mail and Youtube land and spread it as fact? Gee, what a great idea. If we do it enough we might even be able to get famous like the Huffington Post!!!
No list of books Saran Palin wanted banned will ever show up, because she never tried to get any banned (as many others have already pointed out).
September 9, 2008 at 6:57 pm
@Josh: You were supposed to read the Update to the Update. Or was even that too much for you to bother with?
After this point, any other Comments that indicate such stark stupidity will not be replied to. You may all make yourselves look as foolish as you believe I have done to myself.
September 10, 2008 at 12:23 am
hahaha. The blogger who posted this must be really stupid to “highlight” Harry Potter books that Gov Palin banned 12 years ago. lol
Keeping this post up makes you look like a fool and ruins any potential credibility.
Keep it up! =)
September 11, 2008 at 11:16 am
Actually Mike, your update to the update contains half-truths as well. You state that “And that she shortly thereafter fired the public librarian.” That is not true. The librarian was sent a letter of termination, but in the end was not fired and kept her job.
September 11, 2008 at 12:28 pm
And that she shortly thereafter fired the public librarian says more than a list of banned books ever could. Don’t you get it?
Good grief, someone should teach you how to use Google so you can check your facts before you start to blather. Palin actually fired the librarian twice, and rehired her both times, under public pressure. The librarian was a patronage appointee of the prior mayor, who was Palin’s chief rival in town politics. The librarian was not alone; Palin fired (and rehired) some other holdover appointees of the prior mayor as well. It was just ugly town politics, and there is absolutely nothing about this incident to suggest it had anything to do with censoring the library’s collection.
You can read about it here: Sarah Palin — Separating Fact from Fiction
Are you done making a fool of yourself.
September 11, 2008 at 3:43 pm
@John and @Michael: Can either of you fucking READ?
>>>But she fired the town librarian twice.
>>>But Palin did end up firing Emmons. The first time, she rehired her, as well as several other department heads that she let go. Palin called it a loyalty test since the employees had been there under the previous mayor. The second time, Palin rehired Emmons only after the town got upset, according to several newspaper accounts and Factcheck.org.
Are YOU TWO done making asses of yourselves?
http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/791636-p2.html
That’s the same fucking article you cited to DISPUTE me, jackass!
September 11, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Mikecane, I’m not following you. Yes, I can read quite well. But you apparently did not read my comment before you unwisely attempted to respond it, and further embarrassed yourself.
We are indeed both citing the same article, and it comports exactly with what I said in my prior comment — Palin fired the librarian (among others) twice, and rehired her twice, under public pressure. If memory serves, she was asking for resignations before she was even sworn in. Understandably, she wanted to appoint her own people to patronage jobs rather than retain people loyal to her predecessor. Nothing unusual about that. According to the article, she backed down because the librarian apparently had popular support. The questions she posed about whether the librarian would remove objectionable books were doubtless intended to help her discern if the librarian was prepared to take orders from the new boss — the article indicates that Palin felt she needed a “loyalty test.” In her shoes, I would also be concerned about the attitude of holdover employees from the previous administration, and so would you.
I notice you are now now relying entirely on invective to support your silliness, without any pretense of rationality. No surprise to me. You totally disregard the point I made — there is absolutely no reason to think Palin intended to censor the library collection. She never expressed any such intention, she never suggested that the library actually contains any “objectionable books” (the questions to the librarian were purely hypothetical), and the firings/rehirings do not even slightly support any such inference.
You can call her a ruthless political infighter if you want. I bet most of her fans in Alaska and elsewhere would agree with that, myself included. But your mindless defense of an indefensible post is pathetic. You are just another gullible (and slow-witted) liberal who got duped by scaremongering left-wing rumors that there was a big censorship issue in Wassila twelve years ago, without bothering to check the facts and find that the rumor had already been debunked. Shame on you.
September 11, 2008 at 7:26 pm
@Michael: Apologies.
>>>the article indicates that Palin felt she needed a “loyalty test.” In her shoes
Look, doesn’t that scare you? If you ever considered holding a political office, would the PUBLIC LIBRARIAN ever come to mind? That the librarian *was* on her mind tells me she is a very, very dangerous woman who cannot abide the cruelty of free thought. And the *librarian* would pose a *threat* to her? A *librarian*?!!?
And as for loyalty tests, are you old enough to know about the noxious “loyalty oaths” during the McCarthy debacle? Dictators and insane people are always concerned about “loyalty.” People who do the right thing *earn* loyalty. They don’t *demand* it.
September 11, 2008 at 7:40 pm
Dude, that woman was a staunch supporter of the defeated incumbent whom Palin defeated. She just happened to be a librarian, but Palin didn’t want any disgruntled employees pissing in the coffee. She wanted to make sure that everyone would cooperate to get things done. And from the sound of things, this Mary Ellen Whoever is a loudmouth, stubborn, trouble making liar.
September 12, 2008 at 2:00 pm
@Konservo: That puts a different angle on things. Do you have a source URL?
September 12, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Yes, it’s common knowledge. But the Leftist media wants you to think that Palin’s out to burn books. Just google it, I did. Here are two of the first things that came up for me:
<blockquote<Palin eventually tried to fire the librarian who resisted, and who had been a supporter of Palin’s predecessor as mayor: “A few months later, the librarian, Mary Ellen Emmons, got a letter from Palin telling her she was going to be fired. The censorship issue was not mentioned as a reason for the firing. The letter just said the new mayor felt Emmons didn’t fully support her and had to go.”
Link
and
Link
Remember, Palin was up against another Republican, and she thought that the GOP in Alaska needed some change. Palin’s a reformer, if anything that woman she tried to fire would have had connections to the shady Alaskan GOP… I would think that the angry left would admire that Palin did what Dem leaders have not been able to do: clean out the old, corrupt established officials and bureaucrats that have been in power for too long.
September 12, 2008 at 5:53 pm
Thanks for those. So where the hell is this librarian, now that all this is swirling around? We need to hear from HER. I can understand her having a “Let Palin twist in the wind” attitude as cheap payback, but the idea of *books being banned* is not something to be taken lightly and she needs to clarify this matter ASAP.
September 13, 2008 at 6:10 pm
A book she wouldn’t ban: The Complete Book of the Collected Wisdom of Sarah Palin: In Her Own Words: there aren’t a lot of words in it! blankgiftbook.com
September 14, 2008 at 3:18 pm
[…] Sarah Palin supposedly tried to ban while she served as governor of Alaska. For example, this post: Stop Sarah Palin! The Books She Wanted BANNED! The list on that site is disturbing, however, as Factcheck.org notes: The list includes the first […]
September 16, 2008 at 8:11 pm
[…] the list of books she wanted to ban that’s being passed around isn’t real; among other things, it includes a […]
September 19, 2008 at 3:11 pm
So in other wortds, you’re full of it, but are hoping with enough sleezy searching, a magical list WILL show up, until then, you’ll pretend that you have a freaking clue. You are full of fail. Stick to the facts and maybe you won’t come off as the idiot of the year, twit.
Oh, and for the record, I’m voting Barr in 08. I just hate to see idiots acting superior.
September 19, 2008 at 4:16 pm
@Robb: http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/15/bess/
Now STFU.
September 19, 2008 at 8:39 pm
My husband and I are traveling the Lewis and Clark trail from St Louis to Astoria, Oregon (over 17 days). While traveling, we have met wonderful people all along our great Missouri River. On this trip we met a woman at a Fairview, Montana diner (T&C Cafe good food), who lived in Wasilla.
WE coincidentally sat at a table where we could hear this woman talk to her friend and was expressing vehemently why she left Wasilla. I hear her say that this Sarah Palin women was too, too much and that she couldn’t believe how anyone could ban the Catcher on the Rye and “To Kill an Mockingbird” could be trusted to run the country.
It is true!!!! This county must wake up.
September 21, 2008 at 10:14 am
A dimwit with the handle archtop said: Hey, look up ‘excoriate’, moron.
I know what it means, eejit. Do you?
The finance minister of Italy’s conservative and pro-U.S. government warned of nothing less than a systemic breakdown. Giulio Tremonti excoriated the “voracious selfishness” of speculators and “stupid sluggishness” of regulators.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-euromood20-2008sep20,0,7535469.story
Right. Two intelligent writers versus one eejit. You lose.
September 28, 2010 at 8:01 am
That list is a lie and anyone who perpetuates that lie is also a liar.
You should do a retraction and an apology…but I suppose you only do that when it involves corn-holing your boyfriend.
December 13, 2010 at 7:26 pm
Too bad you don’t have the brains to look for the update. I won’t help you with that. Your flaccid brain could use some exercise.
March 9, 2011 at 9:55 pm
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that a Palin supporter would use a homophobic insult?
April 8, 2013 at 8:33 am
[…] No the list of books she wanted to ban that’s being passed around isn’t real; among other things, it includes a […]
May 29, 2014 at 1:18 pm
[…] the list of books she wanted to ban that’s being passed around isn’t real; among other things, it includes a […]